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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-21-2004JANUARY 21, 2004 5:00 P.M. TOWN BOARD MEETING The Regular Meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Cortlandville was held at the Town Hall, 3577 Terrace Road, Cortland, New York, with Supervisor Thorpe presiding. Members present: Supervisor, Raymond Thorpe Councilman, Theodore Testa Councilman, Edwin O'Donnell Councilman, Ronal Rocco Town Clerk, Karen Q. Snyder Absent: Councilman, John Pilato Others present were: Town Attorney, John Folmer; Highway Sup't. Carl Bush; Water & Sewer Sup't. Peter Alteri; James Trasher of Clough, Harbour & Associates; Planning Board Member, Nick Renzi; Dick Schutz of Suit-Kote Corp., and News Reporter, Nicole Flatow of the Cortland Standard. Supervisor Thorpe called the meeting to order. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Rocco, to approve the Town Board Minutes of September 17, 2003 as written. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman Rocco made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file the Cortlandville Planning Board Minutes of October 28, 2003. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman Testa made a motion, seconded by Councilman O'Donnell, to receive and file the Cortlandville Planning Board Minutes of November 25, 2003. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file the Cortlandville Zoning Board of Appeals Minutes of October 28, 2003. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman Rocco made a motion, seconded by Councilman O'Donnell, to receive and file the Cortlandville Zoning Board of Appeals Minutes of November 25, 2003. All voting aye, the motion was carried. RESOLUTION #25 AUTHORIZE PAYMENT OF VOUCHERS - JANUARY Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Rocco VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the vouchers submitted have been audited and shall be paid as follows: General Fund A Vouchers #1 - 55 $ 4.7,048.02 General Fund B B1 - B7 $ 38,403.69 Highway Fund DB D1 - D32 $ 37,637.39 Water Fund W 1 - W 12 $ 9,789.72 Sewer Fund S1 - S5 $ 1,078.94 Capital Projects H1 - H3 $ 721.80 JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 2 Supervisor Thorpe offered privilege of the floor to those in attendance. Councilman O'Donnell apprised the Board he completed the audit for the Town Justice's books and found everything to be in order. He apprised the Board that in the year 2003 the Town Court took in $750,000 in fines, of which $193,000 went to the Town. Justice Castillo projected that in 2004 the Court would take in more money in fines, which would result in more money for the Town. Councilman O'Donnell informed the Board that the Court is ranked number 36 out of 1300 courts for case volume in the State of New York. In Upstate New York, the Town Court is the twelfth largest in case volume. According to Judge Castillo, he spends approximately 25 to 30 hours a week at the Town Court, and conducts two to four arraignments a week. Councilman O'Donnell also apprised the Board the courtroom has a new bench, which was built by Town Highway Deputy Sup't. Fred Walker, Jr. Councilman Rocco apprised the Board he audited the Town Clerk's records to his satisfaction and found everything to be in order. He stated he disagreed with the process of auditing the Town Official's books because the Board members are not auditors. Councilman Testa stated he audited the books for the Water & Sewer Department and the Highway Department and found everything to be in order. Councilman Rocco thanked Highway Sup't. Carl Bush for promptly fixing two street lights. The resident who notified Councilman Rocco sent him a thank you note for the quick response. Councilman Rocco also notified the Board he received several phone calls from residents on Hedgemoor Drive who are interested in having street lights installed, and felt they would be submitting a petition in the near future. Councilman Rocco also mentioned the January 17th 2004 Cortland Standard newspaper article, which gave recognition to the hard-working Town of Cortlandville Highway employees. Councilman Testa commented on the water problem that occurred on Davinci Drive a few weeks ago which was fixed by the Cortlandville Water & Sewer Dept. The resident who had the problem sent Councilman Testa a thank you note for the Town's help. Councilman Testa commented on the donations received for the utilization of the Town's parks. He felt the Town should set a usage fee for using the parks rather than accepting a voluntary donation. He informed the Board the most common donation for use of one of the Town's parks was only $25.00. Often times no donation is made. Councilman Testa felt that a set fee would help pay the Town's costs of park maintenance. Councilman Rocco mentioned an article in the Cortland Standard regarding the Village of Homer's Recreation Department. According to the article the Village of Homer was not happy with the Town's $3,000 contribution although it was $1,000 more than its 2003 contribution. The Village would be charging an additional $10.00 to residents outside the village to participate in any of the recreation programs. Councilman Rocco stated he did not see anything wrong with charging a fee to those people who use services that his retired neighbor would not use or benefit from. He stated that in this time of fiscal difficulty they ought to be looking more towards having those who participate pay the fare than the aging population who struggles with taxes already. Monthly reports for the Town Clerk and Justice for the month of December 2003 are on the table for review and filed in the Town Clerk's office. iz JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 3 RESOLUTION #26 ACCEPT ANNUAL REPORT OF WATER AND SEWER DEPARTMENT Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Testa VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Annual Report of the Water and Sewer Department for the year of 2003 is hereby accepted, and shall be received and filed. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file the 1" Quarter Water & Sewer Report. All voting aye, the motion was carried. RESOLUTION #27 ACCEPT ANNUAL REPORT OF THE TOWN CLERK Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Testa VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Annual Report of the Town Clerk for the year 2003 is hereby accepted, and shall be received and filed. RESOLUTION #28 ACCEPT ANNUAL REPORT OF TOWN RMO AND SCHEDULE OF DISPOSED RECORDS IN 2003 IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE RECORDS RETENTION AND DISPOSITION SCHEDULE Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Testa VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby accept the Annual Report of the Records Management Officer of the Town, including a list of the disposed records in 2003, in accordance with the Records Retention Disposition Schedule, MU-l. Town Clerk Snyder apprised the Board there was a new item in their packet from Larry Cornell, Majority Leader of the Cortland County Legislature, which would be discussed later in the meeting. Attorney Folmer reported: Cortland Sports Complex: Attoney Folmer apprised the Board they received the grant for the Cortland Sports Complex, which was misdirected to the City of Cortland as opposed to the Town. The Town received an assignment agreement, which transfers the grant from the City to the Town. In a prior meeting the Board discussed delegating its administrative responsibilities for the grant to Linda Hartsock of the Cortland County Industrial Development Agency (IDA). Attorney Folmer requested the Board adopt a formal resolution delegating responsibility to the IDA, which would in effect show the federal government why the IDA would be applying on behalf of the Town. RESOLUTION #29 AUTHORIZE SUPERVISOR TO DELEGATE THE ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILIES OF THE TOWN FOR A FEDERAL GRANT ON BEHALF OF THE CORTLAND SPORTS COMPLEX TO THE CORTLAND COUNTY INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY Motion by Councilman Rocco Seconded by Councilman Testa VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED 13 JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 4 WHEREAS, the Town Board of the Town of Cortlandville authorized and directed the Supervisor to apply for a grant through the Federal Government on behalf of the Cortland Sports Complex, property located at 4292 Fairground Drive, tax map 476.19-01-30.100, and WHEREAS, the Town Supervisor has decided to delegate his administrative responsibilities to the Cortland County Industrial Development Agency (IDA), which would allow the IDA to apply for federal monies on the town's behalf, therefore BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby authorize and direct the Supervisor to delegate the town's administrative responsibilities for a federal grant on behalf of the Cortland Sports Complex to the Cortland County Industrial Development Agency. Audit for Town Justice Court: Attorney Folmer presented each Board member with a copy of a letter from Port, Kashdin & McSherry, Certified Public Accountants, which is the firm that would accomplish the audit for the Justice Court. The estimated cost would be between $3,000 and $3,500. Attorney Folmer recommended the Board adopt a resolution authorizing Judge Castillo to engage the services formally and to have the audit conducted. RESOLUTION #30 AUTHORIZE TOWN JUSTICE TO ENGAGE THE SERVICES OF PORT, KASHDIN & McSHERRY TO CONDUCT AN AUDIT OF THE COURT ACCOUNTING RECORDS Motion by Councilman Rocco Seconded by Councilman O'Donnell VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby authorize and direct the Town Justice to engage the services of Port, Kashdin & McSherry, Certified Public Accountants, to conduct an audit of the Town Court accounting records, for an amount not to exceed $3,500.00. Clough, Harbour & Associates Contractual Agreement: Attorney Folmer apprised the Board the contractual agreement between Clough, Harbour & Associates and the Town was submitted for the year 2004. Supervisor Thorpe executed the agreement on January 20, 2003, without realizing that Attorney Folmer had not yet read the contract. Since its execution Attorney Folmer read the agreement and determined it was standard and consistent with what the Town has done in the past. Attorney Folmer requested the Board confirm the execution of the Clough, Harbour & Associates contractual agreement. RESOLUTION #31 CONFIRM THE EXECUTION OF THE CLOUGH, HARBOUR & ASSOCIATES CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENT BY SUPERVISOR THORPE Motion by Councilman Rocco Seconded by Councilman O'Donnell VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby confirm the execution of the 2004 contractual agreement between the Town and Clough, Harbour & Associates by Supervisor Thorpe on January 20, 2004. Councilman Rocco thanked James Trasher of Clough, Harbour & Associates and the engineering firm itself for their hard work. 14 JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 5 Proposed Legislation: Attorney Folmer apprised the Board they should consider establishing time frames for three pending pieces of legislation, and reminded the Board the next two meetings in February were scheduled for 5:00 p.m. The first piece of legislation to be considered is an amendment to the Aquifer Protection Ordinance, which would restrict gasoline and filling stations, as well as used car lots under certain circumstances, in areas 1 and 1 A of the Aquifer Protection District. The second piece of legislation is the Wellhead Protection Plan. The third piece of legislation to be considered is the rezoning recommendations. Attorney Folmer reported to the Board that they appointed a committee to make recommendations to the Board as to rezoning along the corridor of Route 281/Route 13. The committee made its recommendations, and therefore completed its work. The recommendations are now pending before the Town Planning Board, Town Zoning Board of Appeals, and the County Planning Board. Attorney Folmer believed the County Planning Board would act on the rezoning recommendations at its next meeting and forward any comments to the Town Planning Board before its January 27, 2004 meeting. Unless the Planning Board took more than one meeting to comment on the rezoning recommendations, the comments would be forthcoming to the Town Board. Attorney Folmer stated the rezoning recommendations would require significant discussion on behalf of the Town Board. A public hearing could be scheduled once the Board was comfortable with a, draft of the rezoning recommendations that could be submitted to the public. Attorney Folmer recommended the Board deal with the Aquifer Protection amendments concerning the gas stations and used car lots first, followed by the Wellhead Protection Plan, and lastly with the rezoning recommendations and amendments. Attorney Folmer stated the Board could schedule public hearings regarding the Aquifer Protection amendments and the Wellhead Protection Plan early in March. The Board would have to wait to receive recommendations from the involved agencies regarding rezoning before scheduling any public hearings. Jury Duty: Attorney Folmer reminded the Board of their discussion at the January 7th, 2004 meeting regarding jury service for Town employees. He requested the Board convene to an executive session to discuss personnel issues. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Rocco, to receive and file Correspondence from Water & Sewer Sup't. Peter Alteri regarding the Town of Cortlandville supplying the Village of Homer with water while the Village made a repair to their main line. All voting aye, the motion was carried. RESOLUTION #32 AUTHORIZE EXTENSION OF TIME FOR TAX COLLECTION TO JUNE 1, 2004 Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Rocco VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Supervisor is hereby authorized and directed to sign and forward a request for an extension of the tax collection program until June 1, 2004 to the Cortland County Treasurer, in compliance with Section 938 of the Real Property Tax Law. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file correspondence from Gene & Marilyn Baker regarding the proposed Super Wal-Mart. All voting aye, the motion was carried. JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 6 Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file correspondence from Justine Butler regarding the proposed Super Wal-Mart. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file correspondence from Sean Cummins regarding the proposed Super Wal-Mart. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman Rocco reiterated a statement made by Supervisor Thorpe several meetings ago, which was that comments would be received and filed by the Board only if they were in writing. Attorney Folmer stated the Board needed to establish a record to which the Board could refer to in the future. The way to establish a record is to receive and file written comments. RESOLUTION #33 AUTHORIZE HIRING SOPHIA WEBER FOR A TEMPORARY PART-TIME POSITION TO ASSIST THE TOWN CLERK AND CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER WITH THE SCANNING OF DOCUMENTS Motion by Councilman Rocco Seconded by Councilman Testa VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED WHEREAS, the Town of Cortlandville applied for and accepted the Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund (LGRMIF) grant tot purchase equipment for the purpose of scanning Town blueprints, maps and other documents for the Town's Records Management Program, and WHEREAS, per Resolution #195 of October 15, 2003, the Town Board authorized the Town Clerk and Code Enforcement Officer to hire Kiera Weber for a temporary part-time position for an hourly wage of $7.00, a dollar amount not to exceed $3,430.00, which was allocated by the LGRMIF grant, and WHEREAS, the Town Clerk and Code Enforcement Officer determined it was necessary to hire another temporary part-time individual to help complete the project within the required time - frame, therefore BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby authorize the Town Clerk and Code Enforcement Officer to hire Sophia Weber for a temporary part-time position for an hourly wage of $7.00. RESOLUTION #34 SCHEDULE PUBLIC HEARING FOR AN AQUIFER PROTECTION PERMIT APPLICATION SUBMITTED BY SUIT-KOTE CORPORATION FOR FEBRUARY 04, 2004 Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Rocco VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, a Public Hearing shall be scheduled for February 04, 2004 at 5:00 p.m. for an Aquifer Protection Permit submitted by Suit-Kote Corporation for property located off of US Route 11, tax map #87.00-03-16.122. James Trasher of Clough, Harbour & Associates apprised the Board that Clough, Harbour & Associates submitted a review of the SEQRA Full Environmental Assessment Form regarding the proposed asphalt storage facility expansion of Suit-Kote Corp. Copies of the review were included in each member's packet. 0 JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 7 RESOLUTION #35 SCHEDULE PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT APPLICATION FOR THE BLODGETT MILLS AREA FOR MARCH 03, 2004 Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Testa VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, a Public Hearing shall be scheduled for March 03, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. for the Community Development Block Grant application for the Blodgett Mills area. Councilman O'Donnell apprised the Board that Thoma Development scheduled an informational meeting in Blodgett Mills for February 10, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. regarding the Community Development Block Grant. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Rocco, to receive and file correspondence from Lawrence Cornell, Legislative District 18, regarding the City/Town/Village Association of Cortland County. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Supervisor Thorpe apprised the Board that he and Deputy Supervisor Testa were designated to attend the meetings for the Association, however he extended the invitation to the rest of Board to attend the meetings as well. According to Supervisor Thorpe the Association was created to develop cooperative ventures at all three jurisdictional levels. RESOLUTION 436 APPOINT SUPERVISOR AND DEPUTY SUPERVISOR TO REPRESENT THE TOWN AT THE MEETINGS FOR THE CITY/TOWN/ VILLAGE ASSOCIATION OF CORTLAND COUNTY Motion by Councilman O'Donnell Seconded by Councilman Rocco VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby appoint Supervisor Thorpe and Deputy Supervisor Testa as delegates to represent the Town at the meetings for the City/Town/Village Association of Cortland County. Councilman Rocco made a motion, seconded by Councilman O'Donnell, to receive and file correspondence from the Cortland County Soil & Water Conservation District regarding the Stormwater Plan review for Suit-Kote Corp. Bulk Asphalt Facility on Route 11 in Polkville. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman made a motion, seconded by Councilman, to receive and file correspondence from the NYS Office of Real Property Services regarding the 2003 Maintenance Aid Certification for the Town of Cortlandville. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file correspondence from the Cortland County Planning Department regarding their review of the Zoning Text and Map Amendment. All voting aye, the motion was carried. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to receive and file correspondence from the Cortland County Planning Department regarding their review of the Aquifer Protection District Special Permit application of Douglas Ondrak, for property located at the former SCM building. All voting aye, the motion was carried. JANUARY 21, 2004 TOWN BOARD MEETING PAGE 8 17 RESOLUTION #37 AUTHORIZE SUPERVISOR TO TRANSFER $1,000.00 FROM THE SEWER SURPLUS FUND TO THE CAPITAL PROJECT SEWER FUND FOR THE HIGHLAND ROAD SEWER PROJECT Motion by Councilman Rocco Seconded by Councilman O'Donnell VOTES: ALL AYE ADOPTED WHEREAS, the Bookkeeper has requested a cash advance be transferred from the Sewer Surplus Fund to the Capital Project Sewer Fund for the Highland Road Sewer Project, therefore BE IT RESOLVED, the Town Board does hereby authorize and direct the Supervisor to transfer $1,000.00 from the Sewer Surplus Fund to the Capital Project Sewer Fund, and it is further RESOLVED, the Town Sewer Surplus Fund will be reimbursed when the project is bonded. Councilman Rocco made a motion, seconded by Councilman O'Donnell, to recess the Regular Meeting to an Executive Session. All voting aye, the motion was carried. The meeting was recessed at 5:40 p.m. The following information was received from the Supervisor's office. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to adjourn the Executive Session and reconvene to the Regular Meeting. All voting aye, the motion was carried. No action was taken. Councilman O'Donnell made a motion, seconded by Councilman Testa, to adjourn the Regular Meeting. All voting aye, the motion was carried. The meeting was adjourned at 6:15 p.m. 1 Respectfully submitted, Karen Q. Snyder Town Clerk Town of Cortlandville